If Google removes the pirated sites there are a lot of people who are going to turn to another search engine. Even if it's only rarely that they search for pirated content - lots and lots of people do it rarely. There is an entire generation of people who are only vaguely aware that there are other ways *other* than Google to search net.

graeth:Google already scrubs results from searches; anything that contains pirated material or has to possibility.Even in verbatim searches, it even notifies you at the bottom of the page.

Never had such an issue, I just can't get to the pirate bay at home because apparently the ISP I use at home blocks the site... but certainly not Google.I also have neverreceived such warnings from any other torrent site. Nor from any site that uses P2P legitmatly for large downloads.

Lexx:Getting shiat for free is more popular than paying for it. Google ranks sites on popularity. No farking shiat guys.

I have had times where I paid for something, but the download rates were retardedly slow, so I just pirated it.Also, if I pay for digital content like a movie, I don't want your f'n commercials. When you purposely make your own products inferior to the pirated versions, don't biatch to me about how they are less popular.

In all seriousness - I'm surprised more people haven't follow their lead. *I've* been thinking about doing it myself, but I'm guessing I wouldn't have the legal clout to get anything going. Basically, I'd record me singing 12 songs and put it on a 'CD'. I'd pay to have 10 copies made and make a legit website for my new music label.

Then, 'someone' would leak it to the internet. It might even be mislabeled....who knows. The torrents might be marked as 'fake' after enough downloads, but whatever. I don't need a lot. Naturally 'someone' would seed them log the IPs of everyone who illegally downloads my CD. I'd also regularly try to download it from torrent sites and log the IP of everyone sharing it.

I'd trace back the IPs - ignoring all the ones that aren't from a middle/middle-middle class neighborhood in the United States. I'd be able to determine the ISP - so I'd just need a lawyer to send in a demand for their access logs or something, however the RIAA does it - to get back to specific ISP customers....then I sue them. I'd offer them the option to settle out of court for a few grand.

I'd trace back the IPs - ignoring all the ones that aren't from a middle/middle-middle class neighborhood in the United States. I'd be able to determine the ISP - so I'd just need a lawyer to send in a demand for their access logs or something, however the RIAA does it - to get back to specific ISP customers....then I sue them. I'd offer them the option to settle out of court for a few grand.

Except, it's already been done and the courts are not to happy about it. Do some serious reading on here

Lexx: Getting shiat for free is more popular than paying for it. Google ranks sites on popularity. No farking shiat guys.

Also from the "No farking shiat guys" files:Pirate forums/blogs/directories with daily updates and comment sections rank higher than some movie's official giant Flash blob with a trailer, six low-res wallpapers and no more info than you can find on the back of the DVD?

Fark_Guy_Rob:In all seriousness - I'm surprised more people haven't follow their lead. *I've* been thinking about doing it myself, but I'm guessing I wouldn't have the legal clout to get anything going. Basically, I'd record me singing 12 songs and put it on a 'CD'. I'd pay to have 10 copies made and make a legit website for my new music label.

Then, 'someone' would leak it to the internet. It might even be mislabeled....who knows. The torrents might be marked as 'fake' after enough downloads, but whatever. I don't need a lot. Naturally 'someone' would seed them log the IPs of everyone who illegally downloads my CD. I'd also regularly try to download it from torrent sites and log the IP of everyone sharing it.

I'd trace back the IPs - ignoring all the ones that aren't from a middle/middle-middle class neighborhood in the United States. I'd be able to determine the ISP - so I'd just need a lawyer to send in a demand for their access logs or something, however the RIAA does it - to get back to specific ISP customers....then I sue them. I'd offer them the option to settle out of court for a few grand.

9/10 for really appealing to the RIAA-inspired angry villager side of fark.

In all seriousness - I'm surprised more people haven't follow their lead. *I've* been thinking about doing it myself, but I'm guessing I wouldn't have the legal clout to get anything going. Basically, I'd record me singing 12 songs and put it on a 'CD'. I'd pay to have 10 copies made and make a legit website for my new music label.

Then, 'someone' would leak it to the internet. It might even be mislabeled....who knows. The torrents might be marked as 'fake' after enough downloads, but whatever. I don't need a lot. Naturally 'someone' would seed them log the IPs of everyone who illegally downloads my CD. I'd also regularly try to download it from torrent sites and log the IP of everyone sharing it.

I'd trace back the IPs - ignoring all the ones that aren't from a middle/middle-middle class neighborhood in the United States. I'd be able to determine the ISP - so I'd just need a lawyer to send in a demand for their access logs or something, however the RIAA does it - to get back to specific ISP customers....then I sue them. I'd offer them the option to settle out of court for a few grand.

The reason artists and studios don't do this is because then the person who downloaded it can claim the file was provided by an authorized source. If you give me a copy of your work, you can't sue me for taking it.

In all seriousness - I'm surprised more people haven't follow their lead. *I've* been thinking about doing it myself, but I'm guessing I wouldn't have the legal clout to get anything going. Basically, I'd record me singing 12 songs and put it on a 'CD'. I'd pay to have 10 copies made and make a legit website for my new music label.

Then, 'someone' would leak it to the internet. It might even be mislabeled....who knows. The torrents might be marked as 'fake' after enough downloads, but whatever. I don't need a lot. Naturally 'someone' would seed them log the IPs of everyone who illegally downloads my CD. I'd also regularly try to download it from torrent sites and log the IP of everyone sharing it.

I'd trace back the IPs - ignoring all the ones that aren't from a middle/middle-middle class neighborhood in the United States. I'd be able to determine the ISP - so I'd just need a lawyer to send in a demand for their access logs or something, however the RIAA does it - to get back to specific ISP customers....then I sue them. I'd offer them the option to settle out of court for a few grand.

This sounds eerily similar to the scheme that Prenda Law is currently receiving an extended judicial beatdown for employing.

I'd trace back the IPs - ignoring all the ones that aren't from a middle/middle-middle class neighborhood in the United States. I'd be able to determine the ISP - so I'd just need a lawyer to send in a demand for their access logs or something, however the RIAA does it - to get back to specific ISP customers....then I sue them. I'd offer them the option to settle out of court for a few grand.

Except, it's already been done and the courts are not to happy about it. Do some serious reading on here

http://www.popehat.com/tag/prenda-law/

HeartBurnKid:This sounds eerily similar to the scheme that Prenda Law is currently receiving an extended judicial beatdown for employing.

That.

No seriously, start all the way at the bottom and go all the way to the top.

/Though most of what they're getting beat down for is failing to mention to the judge that the lawyers representing the copyright owners in court were in fact the copyright owners. And the identity fraud they used to hide the fact.

My standing response to any of the thrashing done by the movie industry over piracy is pretty simple: Offer me an effective means of streaming your brand new releases in 1080p onto my TV for under $20 a pop and I will use it.

I don't care for the theaters anymore (for both the price point and the experience) yet there's several titles I really enjoy watching. So instead I wait a bit, rent the blurays for $2/each and let DVDfab have 'at er. They're losing $18 on every movie that they could get from people like me. Too bad for them I guess.

Google support piracy in exactly the same way Microsoft did in the 80's and 90's. The more use Google is, the more people use it, the more people use it the better it's results get and thus more people use Google. Unlike Microsoft there isn't a long term plan to lock them in later, with Google it simply means more ad impressions and they are the largest advertising agency on the internet.

So no I can't see Google complying with instructions to outright kill a given website from their results unless it's for something universally reviled (such as kiddie porn). Of course eventually it might happen but I can't see it happening without a major fight.